The latest episode of BarBuzz focuses on legislative advocacy and what Tennessee lawyers can expect from the Tennessee Bar Association during the 2026 session of the General Assembly, featuring TBA lobbyists Berkley Schwarz, Ashley Harbin and Brad Lampley. Hosted by TBA’s Communications Coordinator Azya Thornton, the episode covers key priorities for the second session of the 114th General Assembly, including indigent representation funding, adoption and family law proposals, probate legislation, the elimination of the professional privilege tax, as well as TBA initiatives such as the Public Service Academy, Day on the Hill and LAWPAC. The discussion also outlines how TBA members can stay informed and engaged as legislation moves forward. Beginning next week, the TBA’s weekly Legislative Updates Podcast is back providing regular updates from the Capitol and analysis of issues affecting Tennessee lawyers. Listeners can catch past episodes of the podcast anytime in the BarBuzz archive.

A number of lawyers have been reinstated after being suspended for failing to complete continuing legal education requirements. They include 27 suspended in 2025, two suspended in 2024, one suspended in 2017, one suspended in 2014 and one suspended in 2013. The TBA has records of all administrative suspensions and reinstatements going back to 2005. See all lists here.

TBA members were sent an email today with a ballot for the two candidates running for TBA vice president. The email was sent from Intelliscan Inc. Members also were sent an email with profiles of the two candidates running for vice president. That email was sent from elections@tnbar.org. If you did not receive either email in your inbox, please check your spam folder. If either email indeed was not received, please contact elections@tnbar.org to request that the missing email(s) be resent. The candidate profiles also are available on the TBA website. Electronic voting begins today and will close on Feb. 13.

State Rep. John Gillespie, R-Memphis, and Sen. Brent Taylor, R-Eads, have sponsored the Memphis Safe Task Force Accountability Act to require Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy to report on actions tied to felony cases originating from two federal initiatives: Operation Viper and the Memphis Safe Task Force. According to the Daily Memphian, the lawmakers are seeking information about any plea agreements entered, any charges that have been reduced, any cases that have been dismissed or any declinations of prosecution. Reports would be submitted to the Tennessee attorney general, the speakers of the House and Senate, the district attorneys general conference and the relevant U.S. attorney. Taylor said in a press release that if “cases are being dropped, reduced or quietly swept aside, the public has a right to know.” Mulroy responded to the proposal saying it would be “incredibly burdensome” to comply.

The Tennessee Bar Foundation has announced its 2026 grant awards have totaled more than $4 million — the largest grant amount in the history of the program. According to a news release, this year’s grants will go to 41 recipients, reaching residents in all Tennessee counties. Projects funded include individual legal representation, legal clinics and navigation, dispute mediation, housing advocacy, and specialized assistance for survivors of domestic violence. The funds, distributed through the IOLTA (Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts) program, provide critical resources for organizations that provide direct civil legal services to the poor and for programs that improve the administration of justice. With this latest round of funding, the foundation has awarded more than $34 million in grants since its inception. See the full list of grant recipients and read more in a news release from the foundation.

As artificial intelligence (AI) steadily seeps into U.S. courtrooms, a group of state and federal judges has joined forces to confront the technology, Reuters reports. The Judicial AI Consortium launched last week by U.S. Magistrate Judge Maritza Dominguez Braswell in Colorado, U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez in Texas and Judge Scott Schlegel of Louisiana’s 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. The group aims to connect judges nationwide to swap ideas, discuss emerging risks and share how they are using AI on the bench. “GenAI is here, and we have to start thinking through proper use cases,” Schlegel said. According to Braswell, about 90 judges already have expressed interest. The group will hold its first meeting in February.

A recent hearing before a subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation — chaired by Sen. Marsha Blackburn — explored the secondary ticket market. Members heard from singer Kid Rock who criticized the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster and said the companies have not kept their promise to keep ticket prices affordable. He also called on Congress to open a formal investigation into the deals between artists, promoters, venues, ticketing companies, agencies and vendors, alleging such an inquiry would reveal "mountains of fraud and abuse." Blackburn has introduced the "Main Event Ticketing Act," which would and require Live Nation to report successful bot attacks to the Federal Trade Commission according to Axios Nashville. Last year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation requiring total ticketing fees to be disclosed upfront. The Trump administration also has made eliminating price gouging in ticket sales a top priority. Chattanooga CW has more on the hearing.

A majority of the Judges of this Court in regular active service has voted for rehearing en banc of this case. Under Sixth Circuit Rule 40(d), “[a] decision to grant rehearing en banc vacates the previous opinion and judgment or order of the court, stays the mandate, and restores the case on the docket as a pending appeal.” Accordingly, it is ORDERED, that the previous decision and judgment of this Court are vacated, the mandate is stayed, and this case is restored to the docket as a pending appeal. The Clerk will direct the parties to file supplemental briefs and will schedule this case for oral argument as soon as possible.

Christopher A. Call is the new clerk of court for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, according to Chattanoogan.com. He replaces William T. Magill, who retired over the weekend. Call has served as the chief deputy clerk since 2021 in the Chattanooga office. He previous clerked for Tennessee Court of Appeals Judge J. Steven Stafford, then-Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Jeffrey Bivins, U.S. Magistrate Judge Juliet Griffin and Bankruptcy Judge Shelley D. Rucker. Chief Judge Suzanne H. Bauknight thanked Magill for his more than 28 years of service to the court, including 11 years as clerk. She also announced that Caitlin Ray would succeed Call as chief deputy clerk. Ray joined the court’s Knoxville office as operations manager in 2022.

A third Democratic candidate has emerged for state House District 59, which sits along the southern edges of Davidson County. Beth West, a Democratic Party organizer and former nonprofit executive, joins Rick Ewing and Mark Proctor in seeking the seat being vacated by Caleb Hemmer, D-Nashville. Republican Bill Hancock also is running in the Aug. 6 primary according to the Nashville Banner. West says the 2022 court decision overturning Roe v. Wade and the 2023 Covenant School shooting motivated her to get involved in politics.